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not pumping enough and going back to work

so i go back to work on wed. and i've been exclusively bf now...she's 12 weeks. at first i thought i was losing my milk..my breasts got softer and i wasn't pumping a lot. but she's been seeming content and getting wet and dirty diapers. i also called a lactation consultant and she said it's normal, but now the problem i used to be able to pump 2-4oz EASY and now i can barely get 1 oz from BOTH breasts. even when she didn't eat from a particular breast, i'm not pumping anything! i felt the let down and at first will get some milk that sprays then nothing but dribbles and drops. i'll pump both at the same and even tried one at a time...for 15 minutes even. i'm eating oatmeal and drinking the mother's milk tea. but i don't think it's a supply issue since she does seem content and i feel the let down, but i'm not getting anything when i pump. i'm really stressing out since i go back to work on wed. the good thing is that i do have a big supply in the freezer, but i don't know how long that will last. is it the pump? i have the medela advanced in style. any advice?! please help!

Re: not pumping enough and going back to work

The white membranes on the Pump in Style can get micro-cracks in them that can really affect the ability to get enough out when you pump. You might want to try replacing them and see if that helps. Hope that is it for you.

Re: not pumping enough and going back to work

Have you PIS tested, sometimes the motor wear out of they are just plain defective. Also, make sure everything is tightly secured, you may want to try putting on some lanolin before pumping to make sure sucktion to breast is good. Have you tried massageing breast with a warm clothe before pumping? How often are you pumping? Is it before or after db nurses?

Re: not pumping enough and going back to work

i used the PIS, and had the same sort of problems when i went to work, switched out some spare parts, and it worked better for awhile, but I ended up getting a hand pump, and I do a little better with that one... even though I suspect it's all in my head... the whir of the motor always annoyed me. Also, I've noticed that at certain times of the day I can get a lot more than at other times in the day. don't know if that would be helpful going to work, though.